My WWII Vet Grandpa Just Turned 100! He Swears by These 3 Things

My grandfather, William Feldman, turned 100 years old on March 16, and when my wife, 5-year-old and 1-year-old called him to sing him “Happy Birthday,” he reiterated to us his secrets to a long, prosperous life.

Ever since I was a little kid, when I would go to visit my Nana and Pop, I remember Pop sitting on the balcony of their apartment while my Nana was inside, and he was always sipping on scotch and smoking a cigar.

My Pop was interviewed by WCNC-TV in Charlotte, N.C., to celebrate his birthday, and if you watch the video, he is still as sharp today as he was back then.

He gave his three secrets to living a long and healthy life:

• A good cigar
• A sip of scotch
• A calm mind

Those are the keys to keeping it together — and those are daily musts.

Pop always told us war stories from the time he spent serving in WWII. At the age of 17, he joined the United States Navy, leaving behind a much simpler life.

He was stationed on the USS Saginaw Bay. I knew from a young age that he got injured on the aircraft carrier — when an alert was sent to the seamen that an attack was inbound, he fell down the stairs on his way underneath the ship.

He also told me stories of how he was scheduled to go on an assignment one day to take already detonated bombs out to sea to get rid of them, but he got called away at the last minute.

One of the bombs was not denoted, and the men carrying out the mission didn’t make it.

Thankfully, he wasn’t on that mission and he lived to tell amazing stories to his daughter — my mom — me, and now my two children, as well.

We are going to see him next weekend and are throwing him a huge party for his 100th birthday, complete with all relatives from across America and friends he has made along the way.

I’m proud to call this World War II veteran my grandfather. Thanks for letting me share his story with you.